Written by Ikumi Doucette

Welcome to the 2014 Earlham College New Zealand Study Abroad blog!

Arrived safely at the Quaker Settlement.

The program officially started January 9^th, but the inclement weather in the States caused some problems with air travel. The Polar Vortex, which hit the Midwest particularly hard, led to countless flight delays and cancellations across the nation, many of which would have taken the students to their connecting international flight to New Zealand.  The students and program leaders exchanged email after email to coordinate the new flight arrival times with airport pick-ups.  Fortunately, all students had arrived safely in New Zealand and settled into their home at the Quaker Settlement by Monday January 13^th. 

The students jumped straight into introductions for two of their courses; New Zealand Cultures and Environmental Issues of NZ.  Nigel Brooke, who is a settler on the Quaker Settlement and fluent Māori speaker, taught the students some island history, Māori myths, language basics, and waiata (songs) that will be used later in the program.  Peter Frost and Lyneke Onderwater, instructors for the environmental course, introduced the students to the flora and fauna commonly found in the area.  These introductions prepared the students for their first group activity.

The group at the Tongariro tramp trailhead with
Mt. Ruapehu behind. 

Program Assistant Ikumi Doucette hitchhiking
her way to the vans.

After being in the country for a week (less than that for some), we were on our way to the center of the North Island for our first group activity. The tramp route consisted of the Tongariro Crossing and Northern Circuit, which took us 3 days to complete.  We started the day with a 2-hour drive to the mountains, then a 5-hour tramp from Whakapapa Village to Waihohonu Hut.  Let me tell you, we couldn’t have asked for a more beautiful day to hike.  We expected the second day to Oturere Hut to be easier than the previous day because of the shorter tramp time (3 hours).  Instead, we encountered gale force winds!  Some sections on the track exceeded 100 kph, making it very difficult to keep our footing.  The strong winds persisted through the night; at times it sounded like the hut roof was going blow off.  The leaders deemed it too risky to go over the crossing portion of the hike, which would have the strongest winds and steeper climbs than the previous days.  The group had to go out the way they came in. So, in the morning Chris and Ikumi left earlier than the group so they could bring the vans, which were left in a different place from where they exited the trail, to the road the students would come out of.  This called for some hitchhiking.  Once the vans and students were retrieved, we set off for the return drive home.

The group spent the next few days trying to unwind, which included a trip to the beach.  For one of the students, it was her first time going to a beach, ever!  Everyone enjoyed the stunning black sand beach and mud cliffs.  The afternoon was spent jumping over waves, picking shells, exchanging mud baths, and burying fellow classmates.

Beach day at Mowhanau (Kai Iwi) Beach.

At 3:52pm on Monday 20th of January 2014, a 6.3 magnitude earthquake struck 38km north-east of Masterton that was felt across the North Island, including in Wanganui.  According to CNN, there were no reports of major damage or serious injury.  It was the first quake ever felt by most of the students, but they seemed excited rather than frightened.

Next on the agenda: the Whanganui River Trip.  We’ll have more for you when we return in a week!